Cycling trip through China: 2 weeks exploring Yunnan

When it comes to traveling, the destination matters, but also the means and the good company. In my case, this was going to be my first cycling trip through China (Yunnan), in company of good friend. We had two weeks of vacation, it wasn’t much, but it was enough to get us where we wanted to go.

We were living in China, in Yunnan, an inland province in southwest China. The plan was to go from Kunming, the capital of Yunnan, to the rice terraces of Yuanyang, about 350 km to the south.

We planned to do about 30–50 km per day depending on the slopes. If we left on Saturday, by the end of the week we could already be in the rice fields and then the plan was to spend a few days visiting the surrounding villages.

We didn’t plan the trip very much; we bought all the essential materials for a bike trip, checked our bikes a bit to make sure everything was in place, filled the saddlebags and got going. Our plan was take the straightest way with the help of Google Maps and that’s it.

In this post I will explain you our experience: Cycling trip through China: two weeks exploring Yunnan!

Cycling trip through China: Our Yunnan Itinerary

Aspects to take into account before setting out on a cycling trip

The best thing is to use a mountain bike that will serve you both by paths and roads. You can do 30-60 kilometers a day depending on your physical condition and the slopes. In my opinion, I prefer to go a little slower and enjoy the scenery and not just do miles like crazy because you can end up burned.

You should also check your bike a little to make sure everything is in place, that the changes are going well and that it brakes well. With all this we will have enough to embark on a new adventure.

It is advisable to train before, but not essential. If you train, your body will surely appreciate it, especially because of the stiffness of the first few days and because so many hours sitting on the saddle can cause itching if you’re not a little used to it.

It is essential to take installed GPS applications on your mobile like Google Maps or Amaps, where you can search for the best routes and locate you at all times in case you get lost. There are also specific applications to track your route such as My Route.

Alhough it’s advisable to train before we didn’t do it either. I used the bike to go around town and my traveling companion, who was almost 40 years old, didn’t exercise at all since he was going to school. As if that wasn’t enough, as soon as he decided to accompany me, he bought a second-hand mountain bike and didn’t take it until the same day we went out. And like that, we started our cycling trip through Ch

Preparing for a bicycle trip – What to take on a cycling trip?

Essential materials

What you decide to take with you may vary depending on how much time you have to be traveling. My recommendation is to take only what is necessary. Whether you like it or not, every weight counts. Therefore, here is a list of essential materials:

• Saddlebags and waterproof cover for the saddlebags.
• A front and rear light.
• A good set of tools.
• Spare inner tubes and patches.
• An air pump.
• A helmet.
• A rain jacket.
• Sunscreen.
• Sunglasses.
• Toilet bag and first aid kit.
• Light clothing, such as leggings or breathable T-shirts.
• Cell phone holder to watch the route.

Recommended materials

Apart from these materials, there are also others that are not essential, but that are recommended materials:

• Bike gloves.
• Bib shorts, especially for the first days.
• Cap, to rest from the sun in the breaks.
• A utility knife.
• Bungee cord (in case you want to tie more things on top of the saddlebags).
• Toilet paper (just in case you get a tightness in the middle of nowhere).
• A tent with its mat.
• A backpack with shoulder straps to carry things you might need to have on hand for a short stop.
• And last but not least, during your preparations for a bike trip don’t forget to take with you: water bottle, bananas and nuts that will give you the energy you need to reach the end of the world.
• And last but not least, during your preparations for a bicycle trip, don’t forget to bring: a bottle of water, bananas and nuts that will give you the energy you need to reach the end of the world.

A cycling trip through China: Stretch by Stretch

Day 1: Kunming – Dianchi Lake

1. The first day we take it easy to get sensations. Most of the way was flat or downhill.
2. We visited the lake Dianchi (滇池湖) and we reached the outskirts of Chenggong (呈贡).
3. For 50 RMB we stayed in a rather shabby double room of an hotel in a village next to Lake Dianchi.
4. The trip was marked by the pain in the ass that we felt after two hours by bike. It is what you have for not train in advance…

Day 2: Dianchi Lake – Fuxian Lake

1. The climb starts passing through inland villages.
2. We stop to sleep in the city of Chengjiang (澄江) which is a couple of kilometers from Lake Fuxian and we take the opportunity to massage and relax our legs.

Day 3: Cycling around Fuxian Lake

1. One of the most beautiful days. Flat stretch.
2. They say that Fuxian Lake (抚仙湖) is the cleanest lake in China and we check that it is surely true. Crystal clear water, tranquility and a wooden footbridge perfect to surround it.
3. We go down to the middle of the lake through a nice walk between villages and small beaches. At nightfall, we stop in a village on the shores of the lake where we pay 100Rmb to spend the night in a double room overlooking Fuxian Lake.

Day 4: Xingyun Lake – Qilu Lake – Yangguang

1. Downhill and flat stretch.
2. We pass Lonely Mountain, a small island in the middle of the lake, and leave Fuxian Lake towards Xingyun Lake (星云湖) y Qilu Lake (杞麓湖).
3. The two lakes are fine, they are not as beautiful as the Fuxian, but they also brighten your eyes. We were darkened pedaling and about 7 pm we arrived exhausted at Yangguang (杨广), a city at the end of Qilu Lake.
4. We ended up staying in a giant room with double beds for 60 Rmb a night.

Day 5: Yangguang – Jianshui

1. Stretch of almost all uphill. At the beginning very green landscape, mountainous and beautiful villages and at the end dry and ugly landscape. The most interesting thing we came across was a Muslim village of the Hani minority.
2. It was getting dark again, we couldn’t find any place to spend the night and we still had 30 kilometers to go to Jianshui (建水).
3. We got to a point where the highway started and you couldn’t ride a bike. If we wanted to continue we had to follow secondary roads in the dark until we found a hotel, if there was, of course.
4. Suddenly a highway toll worker offered to drive us to Jianshui. We were tired and didn’t know where we were going to sleep if we kept pedaling so we accepted her offer.

Day 6: Jianshui uphill to Potouxiang

1. In the morning we visit the beautiful old part of Jianshui and after lunch we leave for our next destination. It turned out to be another all uphill stretch with steep, but this time beautiful slopes; between green mountains and roads surrounded by giant trees.
2. Just to arrive at the top of the mountain we crossed with a family that had just sacrificed a pig and they invited us to eat with them to recover forces.
3. At the end of dinner we said goodbye and went down for about 30 minutes almost in the dark, only with a front light until we found a place to sleep in the village of Potou (坡头乡) por 60 Rmb.

Day 7: Potouxiang downhill to Nansha

1. The easiest stretch. 40 kilometers of descent through fog and mountains to Nansha (南沙), which is part of the Yuanyang territory.
2. We stayed in a giant double room for 100 Rmb and went to dinner without depriving ourselves of anything to celebrate. We had almost reached Yuanyang’s rice terraces!

Day 8: Uphill to Xinjie. Arrival at Yuanyang’s rice fields

1. 30 kilometers of ascent between mountains and almost not a single village where to stop to eat.
2. At 5 p.m., exhausted and hungry, we were lucky enough to meet a group of young people barbecuing in the open air and they shouted at us to join them. We spent one of the most enjoyable moments of our entire bicycle trip with them eating and drinking beer.
3. They gave us strength to continue and reach Xinjie (新街) just to see the sunset in the rice fields of the main square. We had made it, we had arrived at our destination!

Day 9 and day 10: Duoyishu rice terraces

1. The journey from Xinjie to Duoyishu (多依树) took a long time. It was noticeable that we had been going on for a week without stopping. Without a doubt, the beautiful views of the rice fields during almost the whole trip helped us to move forward.
2. We finally arrived at what is probably the most famous village in Yuanyang, with one of the most spectacular viewpoints of the rice terraces in the whole area of Yunnan.
3. We stayed two days in Duoyishu, walking along the rice terraces until we reached the surrounding villages. In one of our walks through the rice fields we were done at night. It was hard for us to find our way back to the village. We spent a long time walking, trying not to fall into the rice fields and even passing through fields jumping a few fences.
4. A word of advice: if you’re going for Chinese New Year’s, you’d better stay one kilometer from the village, where we end up paying 200 Rmb for a double room. Inside the village the prices were not lower than 500 Rmb.

Day 11: Laohuzui rice terraces

1. On the second day in the morning we went to Laohuzui (老虎嘴), another of the best known places of Yunnan.
2. We went to the same lookout that I had been going for a few years, but this time I finally saw all the rice terraces filled with water. The viewpoint confirmed it again: the cycling trip through China (Yunnan) had been worth it.

Day 12: End of the cycling trip through China – Return to Kunming by bus

1. There is no time to return to Kunming by bike. And the truth is, we don’t even want to. So we took a couple of buses that will take us back. First a van from Xinjie to Nansha, then a bus from Nansha to Jianshui and finally another bus from Jianshui to Kunming.
2. In the evening the bus dropped us off at Kunming South Station, which is a 45-minute subway ride from the center.
3. They wouldn’t let us in with the bicycles on the subway so we still had to pedal an hour and a half home.
4. We got home safe and sound around 10pm. We were also exhausted, but we had returned home with a cycling trip around China to remember.

Is it worth a cycling trip through China and Yunnan?

This cycling trip through China and Yunnan, not only helped us to have a nice memory of the beautiful rice terraces of Yuanyang and each stretch we passed. We were also able to check that it is more than possible to make a trip by bicycle around China.

China is very safe, it gives you a lot of freedom and that it allows you to see many more things that with other means of transport you could not see.

It is curious that once at home I still don’t have the feeling of having finished this journey by bicycle. Rather, I have the feeling that this has been just a first step for many new adventures.

By the way, if you’re thinking about going on a cycling trip around China and enjoyed this post, you might also want to check out this video by an Argentinian friend who also travelled around China by bicycle.

More About Yunnan and China

If you’re planning a trip around the province, you might also find these guides useful:

• 10 Best Places to Visit in Yunnan
• China Travel Guide
• Best Apps for Travelling in China
• The Fascinating History of Yunnan, China
• Living in China: Curiosities and Everyday Life

Planning a Trip to Yunnan?

After several years of exploring the province, we now organise small-group trips and tailor-made itineraries to discover some of the most fascinating places in southwest China.

Our itineraries include destinations such as Dali, Lijiang, Shangri-La, Shaxi, Yuanyang, Jianshui and other lesser-known regions that have preserved much of their authenticity.

If you’d like to discover Yunnan accompanied by someone who lives and travels regularly in the region, take a look at our trips:

• Organised Trip to Yunnan (13 Days)
• Yunnan Trekking Trip (11 Days)
• Yunnan and Sichuan Trip (13 Days)
• All of our Tailor-Made Trips around Yunnan and China

If you have any questions or would like a customised itinerary, feel free to email us at contacto@sindestinoaparente.com, and we’ll be happy to help you plan your trip.

I also invite you to read our travellers’ reviews. There, you can discover their experiences and find out what it was like to explore Yunnan with us. You can also visit our Frequently Asked Questions about Our Trips page to find answers to any questions you may have.

By the way, I currently also offer a private car with driver service anywhere in China. All you need to do is send me your travel itinerary, the exact travel dates, and the number of people travelling.

If you found this post about cycling around China useful or interesting, don’t forget to leave a comment, rate it and/or share it with others!

Don’t listen to what they say. Go see.

 

Marcos Silva

Hi, I’m Marcos.

I’ve been travelling around Asia since 2011 and have spent much of that time living in China, learning Chinese and exploring the country independently.

On Sin Destino Aparente, you’ll find practical travel guides, firsthand experiences and useful tips to help you plan your own adventure.

I currently live in Phuket, Thailand, and organize personalized trips to China for travellers looking to discover the country beyond the usual tourist routes.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me:
contacto@sindestinoaparente.com
Inst: marcossinpolo